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Introduction

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Maori are members of a Polynesian people of New Zealand. They first arrived on the islands in the early 13th century. According to Maori history, Maori migrated from a land they called Hawaiki. Historians are not sure if Hawaiki actually existed or if it is just part of the Maori oral tradition. However, they generally agree that the first inhabitants were from eastern Polynesia in the central Pacific.

Culture

Today Maori make up about 15 percent of New Zealand’s population. Maori people have a great sense of pride in understanding and expressing their culture. The Maori language is taught in schools and has had a resurgence beginning in the late 20th century. There is great respect for Maori culture not just among Maori but also among New Zealanders of European descent (called Pakeha). Since the 1980s biculturalism has increased in New Zealand. All public signs are written in both English and Maori. In addition, many Pakeha use Maori greetings and common words in everyday language.

Marae

At the center of Maori tradition is the marae—a sacred, communal meeting ground. The marae usually consists of buildings and an open space. It is used within the community for important meetings, communal meals, arts and crafts, and cultural shows. There are many important protocols involved for being welcomed into a marae. Visitors are officially welcomed in a ceremony called a powhiri. During the powhiri, prayers, speeches, songs, and hakas (dances) are performed. The ceremony ends with a traditional greeting in which the hosts and visitors press their noses together. Following the official welcome, a feast is often shared. Meat and sweet potatoes are cooked in a hangi, a pit oven in which heated rocks are used to cook the food.

Moko

Courtesy of the New Zealand High Commission, London

A moko is an intricate facial tattoo that Maori originally wore to show tribal status. Men often displayed a full facial pattern, and women usually had mokos on their lips and chin. Each design, which incorporates swirls and curves, was unique to the person. The practice of moko declined throughout the late 19th and 20th centuries. However, since the 1990s an increasing amount of Maori have gotten mokos. Today many Maori use mokos as a mark of their cultural identity.

Weaving and Carving

Weaving and carving are traditional Maori practices that were historically used to create weaponry, clothing, and household items. Both of these practices have survived in modern times. Maori use the flax plant to make clothing, floor mats, and baskets. They create many of the items in the traditional Maori colors of red, white, and black. Originally, the dyes they used were made from plants, mud, and berries. Today Maori use traditional flax weaving to make ceremonial outfits. Some items such as woven baskets are still used in rural communities.

Historically, Maori carved the walls and roofs of the meetinghouses in maraes as well as objects such as tools, weapons, and wakas (canoes). They used a range of materials, including wood, bone, and jade. Today these skills are still practiced in the production of traditional items, but they are used more for decoration and for jewelry. The tourism trade has helped to keep these traditions alive. Visitors provide a demand for the aesthetically pleasing designs and Maori symbolism.

Kapa Haka

Kapa haka is the term for Maori performing arts. A kapa haka performance gives Maori people the opportunity to showcase their culture through song and dance. Kapa haka groups are popular and can be made up of men and women. Also, many schools teach kapa haka. At the biennial festival called Te Matatini, kapa haka groups come together to perform and compete.

Kapa haka has different elements of performance. Waiatas are traditional songs that are sung chorally and are reinforced through hand actions. Women also perform waiata accompanied by a poi dance. A poi is a small ball attached to a cord that is swung in rhythm to the music.

The haka is a performance of song and dance. There are many different types of hakas, originating from the various Maori tribes. Depending on the haka, it can be interpreted as both a challenge and a welcome. The men take the front of the stage and perform rhythmic vocal chants, accompanied by body percussion and facial expressions. The haka is probably one of the most well-known cultural practices of Maori people. It has received global exposure through New Zealand’s All Blacks national rugby team, which performs the haka before international games. The performance of the haka is given a large degree of respect and honor in New Zealand.

Politics

Maori have played a role in the governing of New Zealand since the mid-19th century, when Maori members first entered Parliament. All voters who claim Maori ancestry can vote in a Maori electoral district, to elect a representative to a parliamentary seat reserved for Maori. Those of Maori ancestry also have the right to register and vote in a non-Maori (general) district. However, they can only vote in one or the other.

Legislation was introduced in 1867 to create four Maori seats in New Zealand’s Parliament. The measure was called the Maori Representation Act. It was intended to give the indigenous people of New Zealand a chance to exercise their right to vote. The act was only intended to be a temporary measure until landholdings had been transferred from tribal to individual ownership. At that time Maori were to have joined the general electoral rolls. However, because of the difficulty of dividing Maori holdings, the act was made permanent in 1876. Since then there have been many calls to abolish it. Some people view the system as discriminatory and offensive to Maori. Others think it gives Maori an unfair advantage. Either way, the system has continued into the 21st century.

In the 1990s the number of Maori electorate seats increased to seven. Maori electorates historically have aligned themselves with the Labour Party. However, in 2004 a junior Labour minister, Tariana Turia, resigned from the Labour Party. She disagreed with Labour’s support of the Foreshore and Seabed Act. The act deemed that title of New Zealand’s foreshore (the land bordering the ocean water) and seabed (the ocean floor) was held by the crown rather than the Maori. Turia’s break from the Labour Party resulted in her forming the Maori Party with Pita Russell Sharples.

The Maori Party’s aim was to advocate Maori rights and represent Maori people in the ongoing debates over land entitlement. However, in the general election in 2017, the Maori Party lost all its seats to Labour. Even so, the Maori Party was credited with improving policy and awareness around Maori health and well-being.

Notable Maori politician Winston Peters represented the National Party from 1978 to 1993. At that time he resigned from Parliament, won a seat as an independent candidate, and then created the New Zealand First Party. He was deputy prime minister of New Zealand from 1996 to 1998 after forming a coalition government with the National Party. In the 2017 general election, neither the Labour nor the National parties gained enough seats to run the government. This resulted in coalition talks with Peters and the New Zealand First Party. Peters decided on a coalition with the Labour Party. As a result, Jacinda Ardern became the 40th prime minister of New Zealand. Peters was appointed deputy prime minister and foreign minister.

History

Hulton Archive/Getty Images

The first European contact with Maori people occurred in December 1642, when Abel Tasman arrived off the coast of New Zealand. He did battle with a group of Maori on the South Island and left the area largely unexplored. In 1769–70 Captain James Cook circumnavigated the two main islands (North and South islands). He wrote about the intelligence of Maori people and the suitability of New Zealand for colonization.

Maori initially welcomed whalers, sealers, and other Europeans seeking profit in New Zealand. However, with the introduction of muskets and disease, as well as Western agricultural methods and missionaries, Maori culture and social structure began to disintegrate. By the late 1830s, European settlers began to land in New Zealand by the hundreds.

The British assumed formal control of New Zealand in 1840. European settlement on Maori land began to cause conflict. In 1845 some Maori chieftains began ravaging areas of the far north. They were finally suppressed in 1847 by colonial forces under Governor George Grey. Peace lasted until 1860, when land issues once again flared up. Fighting continued off and on between Maori and the British for the next few years until the British suppressed Maori resistance.

In the early 1900s Maori culture declined. By mid-century many Maori had left their traditional lands and moved to urban centers. However, in the 1970s and ’80s, Maori became much more politically and culturally active. They demanded the use of the Maori language in education and official settings. They also wanted Maori arts and culture to be preserved. At the same time, Maori sought the return of land and financial compensation for the government’s past injustices.

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